5 Strategies to Help Organizations Tackle Software Sprawl

Maximize your ROI on the technology you need.

“SaaS sprawl is a natural consequence of the SaaS revolution. An analysis of Okta’s 2020 customer database revealed that companies employing 2,000 or more individuals maintained an inventory of 175 SaaS apps on average” – TechCrunch

The infamous phenomenon that is software sprawl, occurs when the quantity of applications or software components in an environment experiences rapid growth and fluctuations, leading to a substantial rise in complexity and rendering traditional software management approaches ineffective.

In the fast-paced world of technology, businesses often find themselves grappling with the challenges of uncontrolled proliferation of software applications across an organization. Suffice to say that this seemingly innocuous issue can significantly impact Return on Investment (ROI) if left unaddressed.

In this blog, we explore how software sprawl negatively affects ROI and highlight 5 powerful strategies for optimizing software licensing through consolidation, expert guidance and licensing discounts.

 

The Hidden Costs of Software Sprawl

Walk Me’s 2022 - 2023 State of Digital Adoption Report showed that large enterprises are spending over $246 million pursuing strategic goals with digital transformation, IT and software spend being the majority portion.

Surveys from this same report showed that large enterprises spend an estimate of over $104 million on their digital transformation and software.

On average, businesses deploy 89 different applications, with enterprises having as many as 187. However, 30% of these apps are either duplicative or provide no evident value.

These findings conclude that many businesses are overspending by millions on software they don’t even need.

 

Furthermore, with the complexity and rapid growth of organizational software usage, hidden costs can arise for several reasons, such as:

 

Redundancy and Overlapping Functionality

Multiple software tools with overlapping features can lead to redundancy, increasing operational costs without providing proportional benefits.

 

Inefficient workflows

Workers toggle between different applications approximately 1,200 times a day, resulting in nearly four hours of wasted productivity weekly and increased frustration leading to higher turnover rates.

 

Licensing Expenses

Unmanaged software sprawl often results in unnecessary licensing expenses, as organizations may invest in more licenses than required for their actual usage.

 

Integration Challenges

Disparate software systems may struggle to integrate seamlessly, causing increased IT support costs and further workflow disruptions as previously mentioned.

 

Building a Strategic Approach

In the pursuit of organizational efficiency and streamlined operations, consider these five key strategies to optimize your software ecosystem:

 

How Managed Solution Can Help

As seasoned veterans of successful digital transformation projects, we help ensure you have the software you need with a measurable return on investment. By leveraging our team you free your company from the clutches of software sprawl through the following advantages:

• Consolidation for Efficiency: Streamline your software ecosystem by identifying and consolidating redundant applications, ensuring that each tool serves a unique and necessary purpose.

 

• Leveraging Expertise: Seek the expertise of IT professionals to conduct thorough software audits, helping you understand usage patterns, license requirements and opportunities for consolidation.

 

• Holistic Management: Implementing a comprehensive approach to the management of your software allows for centralized control and monitoring of your software environment, optimizing performance and ensuring compliance with licensing agreements.

 

• Strategic Collaboration with Vendors: Engage in proactive discussions with software vendors to negotiate favorable licensing terms, considering factors like volume discounts and flexible payment options.

 

• Regular Review and Updates: Stay informed about changes in software usage patterns and technology trends. Regularly review your software portfolio to identify opportunities for further optimization.

 

Centralized Control

Managed Solution provides a centralized platform for overseeing software assets, enabling efficient monitoring, updates, and compliance management.

 

Cost Optimization

By leveraging our experts, Managed Solution can facilitate the consolidation and efficient management of software applications. Our proactive approach empowers organizations to negotiate more favorable licensing deals, capitalizing on volume discounts and ultimately optimizing costs associated with software usage.

 

Expert Guidance

At Managed Solution, we have mastered the art of analyzing our client’s software environments to build better strategies and provide ample guidance and resources to maximize their cost efficiencies.

 

Enhanced Security and Compliance

Managed Solution will enforce security protocols and ensure compliance with licensing agreements, reducing the risk of legal and financial consequences.

 

Learn More

Tackling software sprawl is a strategic imperative when building a robust ROI for your technology. Through consolidation, expert guidance and licensing discounts, organizations can not only cut unnecessary expenses but also enhance efficiency, security, and compliance.

If you would like to learn more about how Managed Solution can help you overcome the costs of software sprawl, chat with one of our experts here.

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San Diego, CA. - On Thursday, June 29th, Managed Solution's Founder, Sean Ferrel, presented at AITP San Diego's 8th annual Cloud Conference. The "Cloud Computing and Beyond" conference held at Town and Country Mission Valley featured 400+ of IT professionals who are passionate about the professional growth and education of the SoCal IT community. Speakers throughout the day included thought leaders as well as peer use-cases on cloud, innovative technologies and Big Data/IoT.

Sean Ferrel talked about cloud marketplaces, brokerage and the long term effects of managing your customers cloud strategy. The public cloud offers a whole new world of reoccurring revenue for all of us!

Over the next several years’ public cloud management will be key to the success of both distributors and integrators alike. Cost management, brokerage, and overall management will be at the center of how we manage our customers and automation will allow us to quickly make informed decisions when working with providers.

Large Public Cloud Providers are just starting to gain maturity and most organizations are taking a deeper look at these utility models. While we all have our favorite cloud partners so do our customers and it’s important we look at cloud much like we look at purchasing airline tickets; compare all brands and make sure getting from point A to B is seamless and cost effective.

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Leaning on a managed IT service provider (MSP) for a subset of your IT services can be a boon. More than just tackling a specific domain such as email hosting or customer relationship management, having an MSP as part of your IT mix can free up internal IT staff for more strategic projects.

But establishing a strong, strategic partnership with your MSP is essential. Here we take a look at the current state of managed IT services, where companies are employing the MSP model and how to get the most of your MSP partnership.

Managed services growth is steady

Managed services comprise the second-most popular business model in the channel today, according to IT industry trade association CompTIA's Fifth Annual Trends in Managed Services study. Three-in-10 MSPs surveyed by CompTIA ranked managed services as the leading generator of revenue in the previous 12 months, second to the 44 percent that pointed to IT solutions (such as projects incorporating hardware, software and services), but ahead of other business model choices like value-added resellers (VARs), IT support, and held desk and consulting services.

The study, authored by Carolyn April, senior director of industry analysis at CompTIA, found that the rate of growth of managed services is continuing, but more or less at a steady pace.

"I think the managed services space is moving slowly at sort of the same pace as we've seen over the past five years," April says. "Where we're seeing more momentum right now is the channel that's growing around SaaS applications and SaaS ISVs."

"A lot of these SaaS players are actually MSPs themselves: They've either been born in the cloud or they are existing MSPs that are adding a SaaS component to what they sell in their portfolio," she adds.

Resist the urge to bargain shop for managed IT services

Organizations are continuing to turn to MSPs to handle elements of their IT needs as part of a collaborative arrangement with the internal IT department, according to CompTIA’s research. Companies have become more familiar with managed services and are turning to them for certain IT functions, particularly email hosting, customer relationship management (CRM) applications, storage, backup and recovery and network monitoring.

However, CompTIA is also seeing commoditization occurring because of oversupply, especially at the lower end of the stack. April says this may tempt CIOs to bargain shop for managed services, but they should resist the urge.

"Look for MSPs that understand your business and that speak less about the technology," she says. "I think that's important across the board. You want a partner that can talk about business outcomes and how their services are going to help further your goals from a business perspective, not a technology perspective."

Here, April says a proven track record is key — especially customer testimonials from existing customers. She warns that it should be a red flag if an MSP offers you a cookie-cutter service-level agreement (SLA). It's a much better sign if they seek to craft a customized contract based on your business and needs.

Top MSPs extending their reach to meet demand

Strategic MSP use doesn’t have to be confined to commodity IT services. Many CIOs, says April, are looking for MSPs that can deliver advanced services, including cloud infrastructure management, application management and business process outsourcing.

April also notes increased demand for services around data analytics, business intelligence (BI) and advanced application monitoring. And while some upper echelon services are offering managed services to meet those needs, most MSPs have yet to extend beyond their heritage in managing network infrastructure and basic software infrastructure.

"I think mobile is an area where the channel is getting some traction but they're really not tapping the full opportunity there," she adds.

Partners, not replacements

It is also important to note that while companies are increasingly relying on outside providers for part of their IT needs, MSPs generally complement rather than replace internal IT.

"Very few of these companies get rid of their IT staffs just because they join up with an MSP," April says.

Instead, especially in larger companies, bringing an MSP into the mix frees up existing IT staff to focus on more strategic projects.

"It elevates the IT staff and brings them out of the shadows within the organization," she says. "It allows them to focus on a custom app dev project or cloud initiative — something highly strategic. I think that's a win-win for your IT staff."

That also highlights that the reasons that organizations turn to MSPs have begun to change. In the past, April says, cost savings were seen as the primary benefit of MSPs. Now, she says, cost benefits are considered table stakes and customers are looking for additional benefits like generating revenue and helping the company become more efficient. Even security has evolved from being considered a roadblock to using MSPs to a reason for doing so.

April explains that companies have shifted their views over security as it has become clear that security problems are often the result of human error by internal staff.

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Aluvii stands apart from the competition by offering cutting edge data visualization with Power BI Embedded

By The Power BI Team as written on Microsoft Corporation

The Power BI Team is excited to highlight a new story blog series of notable ISVs who have integrated Power BI Embedded into their offerings to differentiate and innovate their solutions. Our immediate story post comes from Aluvii, which offers SaaS POS solution for amusement parks and leisure facilities. With Power BI Embedded, Aluvii aims to stand apart from the competition, bringing rich data visualization to life all inside their application offerings. How did they integrate Power BI Embedded into their product offering? Read more below, and stay tuned for additional story posts coming your way.

Aluvii, an all-in-one POS software platform for the amusement and leisure industries, recently released their flagship SaaS product and are experiencing a very positive response in the marketplace. The cloud-based software includes a comprehensive set of modules needed to efficiently run an entire business including ticketing, point of sale, e-commerce, memberships, events & reservations, inventory, HR, scheduling & timekeeping, sales & marketing, member portal, online waivers, and much more. Because Aluvii is cloud based, it’s accessible anytime, anywhere, and on any device. In addition, all registers, customer data, and reports are always available, safe, and up to date.

We at Aluvii recognize automated business intelligence and reporting are critical to customers. As such, we selected and utilize Microsoft Power BI Embedded as our cutting edge reporting and dashboard technology solution.

The primary reason for our selection of Microsoft Power BI Embedded was the need for a single reporting platform that could be deployed across multiple operating systems, web portals, and applications. Microsoft’s Power BI is an excellent platform for the deployment of dashboards and reports, but it lacked the flexibility of embedded application inclusion. With the release of the Power BI Embedded solution, we were able to leverage everything we loved in the standard Power BI framework into an integrated product. We researched other solutions but each did not truly allow for embedded application deployment. And many required convoluted integration architectures that had greater possibility of breakage. Since Aluvii is built on top of Azure, the Power BI Embedded solution was seamless, and drove down the total cost of ownership.

The same architecture that allows for rapid deployment of reporting is also being managed through the Azure API Management services. This allows our more advanced clients to build their own custom Power BI Desktop reports and dashboards. With the API Gateway created by the Azure API Management, API Management, Aluvii is able to setup subscription models that provide access to data and other features. Billing clients is also streamlined through this process.

Our development team has leveraged Microsoft Azure as its PaaS, the core API architecture used by the company which has allowed for increased flexibility in development and deployment. And by kick starting the business using the Microsoft BizSpark program, we were able to test and utilize the best of Microsoft’s product line, ensuring a state-of-the-art solution at affordable prices.

The Azure SQL Database product, which is used as the backbone of the Aluvii Software Suite, allows for quick integration within Power BI Embedded. The write-once-deploy-everywhere software process ensures that our reports can be integrated within our web portals, desktop applications, and mobile platforms with minimal development and cost. Microsoft Power BI’s flexible visualizations offers our Aluvii product the ability to develop truly unique reporting solutions across allof our various feature sets and using multiple data sources. At this time, Aluvii is unique in providing dynamic, multi-tenant reporting services built into the core application among all of its other software features.

Overall, Aluvii credits their growing success to its diverse product offerings, the scalability of the Microsoft Cloud Azure Platform, and innovative development teams. Since the initial release of their flagship SaaS offering, Aluvii has received tremendous interest from customers across the globe. The Power BI Embedded reporting feature allows Aluvii to differentiate itself from its competitors, granting deep insights into its customers’ operations.